Do you Dare?

This poem was inspired by a teenager who thought being different was a bad thing and shied away from society. I too am different and I embrace every part of that.

Do I dare to be different?

Do I dare to stand out from the crowd and rebel against the status quo of who I am and who I'm supposed to be?

Do I dare challenge my enemies?

Do I dare push back and stand my ground?

Against those who oppose what I do, how I dress, and who I am?

Am I not a woman? Am I not free?

Is it my skin color? My lack of tolerance for ignorance, or could it be

My inability to follow those not made to lead me?

Do I dare open my mouth?

Do I dare speak my mind and advocate for myself?

Do I dare hold my head up, keep my feet down, and not give way to violence?

Do I dare not care what you think, who you are, or where you're from?

Can I not live in peace, grow in education, excel in my talents, influence my peers, and still know who I am as an individual?

Do I dare to be different?

You see, I come from a stock not found around here

 And I'm bread from materials not yet covered in fear.

I am mathematically in line to visually decline the words of Webster

And No...you cannot define me.

Do what you must...Say what you will

And still...I will rise

I have risen from a bottomless pit with a smile on my face and here I sit

No...here I stand

And I request...No...I demand My Respect!

I will not justify your hatred, I do not accept your lies, and I will not rationalize your actions

I speak these words with a passion

I have my own style...a fashion...a flare

And do I dare...show the world?

Do I dare deny the insecurities, the negativity, and the constant drag for determination?

Do I dare not fall victim to the system that offers no motivation?

I am above the bullying, the procrastination, and the fighting of races

I dare not see colors but faces

Stupidity is born from the pacification to accept the frustrations of the world around us

Who are you to judge me...Then again...who are you not?

But judge not what you THINK you see

Judge the person I aspire to be

Do you even know?

Do you care?

Are you listening?

Do you dare...to be different?

Do you dare stand battle with the world's demons as well as your own?

Can your drums beat to a different song?

Do you dare bite the bullet of sexism, break down the walls of racism, and learn to fight without the weapon of man?

Do you dare take this stand...

Against drugs, guns, and violence.

Do you dare not live in silence?

Make the change you want to see, be the man you want to be.

I aim, I dream, I hope, I share...with you and others who dare

TO BE DIFFERENT!

 

Author's Note

Please provide any feedback that you see fit...join the T.E.A.M. Movement

Reviews

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i wish that more would join movements these days...not be afraid to stand out, stand on their own...instead of being quiet, apathetic, just blending in...a new society today...i miss the 60's---we were who we were and we were what we were...and proud of it.
i am glad to see another "dare to be different"